Science in the Face of the Post-Truth Condition

This book examines and critiques Steve Fullers social epistemology on his study of four ways to understand the nature of post-truth: way ones understanding is an epistemic crisis in which emotion has taken over and facts are irrelevant;  way twos understanding is a legitimation crisis of cognitive authority of science on the legitimation and delegitimation of knowledge claims; way threes understanding is the Internet and social media have led to the democratization of knowledge; way fours understanding is the impact of artificial intelligence (AI) on the changing boundaries of the knower.  Though Fuller is known for his early social epistemology on how knowledge should be organized, and for his later social epistemology on a post-human future and the impact of AI on the changing boundaries of the knower, his position on the nature of post-truth brings together his early and later social epistemology into a coherent project. This book situates and carefully addresses the critics of Fullers work in the context of ongoing crises of authority in science and technology studies, expertise, the university, democracy, and the mass media.

Francis Remedios is a Canadian independent scholar with a PhD from Institute of Philosophy, University of Leuven. His research areas are social epistemology, philosophy of science and philosophy of the social sciences. His 2018 book, Knowing Humanity in the Social World and his 2003 book, Legitimizing Scientific Knowledge, are on Steve Fuller's social epistemology. He has published several articles and book reviews on social epistemology and he is a member of the editorial board of the journal Social Epistemology.